
technical barriers to trade
Thematic Session on Transparency
Hybrid 12/07/2022 - 10:00 Moderator's report
In this two-part session, WTO Members and stakeholders will firstly discuss how to overcome challenges in providing specific information on the product coverage of notified measures. The second part will look at good practices and challenges for domestic coordination and engagement with regulators and the private sector, including with respect to notifications.
Preliminary Guiding Questions
Part 1: Product coverage
- How are the '"products covered'" identified when drafting a TBT notification? If HS or ICS Codes are not specified in a (draft) regulation, does your notification authority still try to identify relevant HS or ICS Codes when notifying? What tools or resources are used to help in this regard?
- Are there particular sectors/industries where the identification of HS Codes poses a particular challenge?
- How do regulators coordinate with customs authorities in identifying specific products subject to regulatory measures and possibly border controls?
- Could a revision to the notification format help improve inclusion of HS/ICS Codes, for example a tickbox option to state that "indicative" Codes have been provided for information purposes only"?
- What are your expectations from a Secretariat-organized training workshop on HS and ICS Codes?
Part 2: Domestic coordination
- What are the 3 to 5 key ingredients for an effective and sustainable domestic coordination mechanism, to comply with and benefit from TBT transparency mechanisms?
- Could you share a concrete example of how active domestic coordination has helped follow up on a notified regulation of interest/concern? Did this help address/prevent a potential trade issue, and how?
- How can digital tools, such as ePing or others, be leveraged to improve domestic coordination?
Speakers

Bruno Standaert
Legal Officer for product harmonization, Unit for Machinery and Equipment, DG Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (GROW) European Commission European Union

Roy Chun LEE
Senior Deputy Executive Director WTO&RTA Center, Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (Chinese Taipei)
From Lack of Interest to Positive Participation - TPKM’s Experiences in Enhancing Private Sector Engagement in TBT Notifications

Becxi Sanchez
International Trade Specialist, Multilateral Affairs Division, Trade Policy and Geographic Affairs, Foreign Agricultural Service, United States Department of Agriculture (United States)
Coordinating inter agency review of measures on agricultural products

Kristan Callahan
Public Health Advisor United States Food and Drug Administration. (United States)
US FDA Experience in Coordination and Consultation on Public Health Regulations
Coordinating inter-agency review of measures on agricultural products and regulatory perspective

MaryAnn Hogan
USA WTO TBT Enquiry Point Standards Coordination Office (SCO) National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) United States

Gabriela Szmidt
TBT Coordinator, EU-TBT Enquiry Point, DG Internal Market, Industry, Entrepreneurship and SMEs (GROW), European Commission (European Union)
The The European Union: domestic coordination
Moderator

Jia Jie LOH
First Secretary (Economics), Permanent Mission of Singapore to the WTO
Share
Problems viewing this page? If so, please contact [email protected] giving details of the operating system and web browser you are using.